Michael's Fall
by Alayne Stone
Summary: There is no escape from the Cage, and slowly but inevitably, Michael breaks... Michael/Lucifer. Warning: incest, angst, character deaths, blasphemy.


When they fell and the Cage closed, Michael's first instinct was to rip Sam Winchester apart. He hated the boy even more than Lucifer at that moment. But Lucifer took control again and soon they were fighting desperately - only to find out neither of them could die in the Cage.

Michael stopped the pointless fighting and while Lucifer was busy torturing Sam, he tried to break out. This couldn't be how it ended, he was never meant to stay here. He dropped his vessel to reach his full potential and he was tearing at the invisible walls for seventy-seven years, after which he understood there was no way he could open it from the inside. Lucifer mocked him.

"Father has left you, because he doesn't give a fuck. He's maybe glad you are trapped here with me."

"I am his will personified!" He screamed. "He would never leave me! I have been a good son, I did everything as it was written."

"Well, then why doesn't he free you?"

He hit his brother, sending him flying against the Cage's wall. "Shut up! Just… shut up!"

"Not need to be _rude_, Michael."

He tried praying, but there was no one to answer. He began to _doubt_ and that terrified him. He was not worth of God's mercy if he, the most loyal angel, was losing his faith. "Please, Father" he whispered to the void. "Please don't let me. If this is punishment, I accept your will. But I am in despair. I'm _afraid_. This place is affecting me."

But there was no answer, only Lucifer's mockery. He shut his eyes and tried to ignore him.

"Brother, come on, have some fun. Torture Sammy a bit."

"What for? It's not going to help." He kept waiting and praying, but as time passed, it got worse.

After Death took Sam's soul with him, not even answering Michael's pleading for an answer, for _anything_, the archangel broke down. He just lay on the icy floor, not even bothering to melt what Lucifer froze up.

God has truly left him. What was he now? Just a sword no longer needed by anyone, left to rust. His existence was meaningless.

"Look at you, the mighty archangel" Lucifer never stopped talking. "How's your pride now?"

"Leave me alone" he whispered. He just wanted to die.

"And you can't, that's the most beautiful thing about this place!" Of course Lucifer was reading his thoughts. "How about you stop being all emo and pay attention to me?"

"You think you can corrupt me? _Me_?" At least, anger was stronger than apathy.

"Oh, yes. Have you forgotten how good I'm at that? And we have till the end of time. Sooner or later, you will listen, brother…"

He said no. He said no for centuries.

Lucifer whispered to him about God's indifference, about God's hate, every hour of every day.

Michael couldn't get away from him. The Cage was enormous but Lucifer followed everywhere. He started losing his mind.

One day, his brother did something different. He kissed him.

"What are you doing?!" He pushed him away in horror. "Does your depravity have no limits?"

"Oh come on, Michael. It's not like you don't want it. You crave submission, and you have no one to worship now that daddy is gone."

He ran away, trying to shut out that voice.

But from that day, Lucifer never stopped, never left him alone. He was there, his icy breath caressing Michael's face, whispering sweet lies. Black wings embraced him gently, folding around his own golden ones.

"Let our Graces touch. You are in pain… I can help, let me help. Michael, I just want you to feel better."

"Leave me alone then" he protested weakly.

"So you can sulk and feel pity for yourself? Oh, brother. I can't watch that. Why don't you believe me? I still love you. I never stopped loving you."

"I cast you down."

"Because Father commanded it. Father, who doesn't even care what happens to us anymore. Is this what you are loyal to? A God who wanted us to kill each other? Have no illusions, Michael. The victory would have cost you your life, and what for?"

The last fragments of his true self tried to warn him Lucifer was lying, he was just deceiving him, that was his nature, but Michael didn't care. He _wanted_ to be deceived. He wanted to believe that someone in this world still cared… and loved him.

He kissed Lucifer.

Michael gave himself to Lucifer every way imaginable. They have been close back in their youth, but that was all pure, innocent love between brothers who had a distant father and all they could rely on was each other. This was different. If he had a soul, he would have given it to Lucifer, just to get more of his kisses, his still-bright Grace and his gentle words. Now he believed everything. God had forsaken him, but he didn't need God anymore.

Lucifer was sweet poison and he got so addicted to him that he would be in pain whenever they separated, even for minutes.

"We have eternity, Michael... they designed this place for torture but we turned it to bliss."

He closed his eyes, sinking into Lucifer's embrace. "I never want to leave. I don't need anyone but you, little brother."

They stopped counting time. Who cared about time anymore? Michael, for the first time in his billions of years existence, didn't have duties. No more war, no more being the shining sword of God, no more stupid Apocalypse. The thought that he once wanted to kill Lucifer seemed insane for him. How could he ever hurt his beloved? Their Graces were so tangled he couldn't even tell where he ended and where the other began.

But everything beautiful has to end.

They had no idea what was going on but the spells that made the walls standing became visible, burning in the air, and they heard sounds of shattering glass, screams and iron doors being shut.

"What..." he asked as the spells began to crash.

"The walls are coming down" Lucifer said, holding him close. "I can't believe it."

"But how can that even happen?"

"I don't know. Even the sigils only opened the door, and some of them are impossible to repeat."

Whatever the force working here was, the walls trembled, melted and finally exploded into a million little pieces of shining dust. They were out. Out in the wind, in the cemetery.

Lucifer laughed and cried and hugged him, babbling incoherently about freedom, and he couldn't even feel happiness. He was scared.

He got back into Adam but Lucifer needed a vessel. Sam wasn't going to say yes again anytime soon, so they just resurrected poor Nick. Michael fixed him up the best he could, so he would last longer without Lucifer's Grace burning him up. Not that looks mattered; humans only saw the vessels but the eyes of an angel always saw the other's Grace shining through.

"You are beautiful" he said before they had their first kiss in human form.

Yet things were no longer as they were in the Cage. Lucifer had a lot of unfinished business. First he tortured some demon to death - Michael couldn't care less about it - then he wanted revenge on Castiel.

The older archangel would have had some reckoning with that annoying little rebel too, that holy fire _hurt_, the memory of pain was still fresh. But he found he didn't really care about this either. His world was nothing but Lucifer. And he learned the hard way it was better not to mess with the Winchesters - even though they were only puny mortals, _somehow_ they always came out winning. He wouldn't underestimate them again and he wanted to keep Lucifer safe.

"Don't. It's not worth it, brother. They are but insects, unimportant."

To Michael's surprise, Lucifer agreed after he had been pleading for hours. But he wanted to kill something to channel his rage, and thus the downward spiral of catastrophes and mass murders began.

Michael despised humans just as much as his brother, but he didn't want them all dead. Even the Apocalypse would have spared the chosen, the good... His beliefs have changed a lot through the centuries they spent in the Cage, he could not say no to Lucifer anymore. They were as one. He worshipped him, he would have died for him.

And still... a little fragment of who he once was remained and he started to feel it was all _wrong_. Just thinking that caused physical pain. It was blasphemy. But watching Lucifer killing innocents for mere fun hurt more and more with each passing day. He begged him to stop and his brother didn't listen - he didn't even understand why Michael had problems. And he was so perfect, so beautiful - in the meantime, he somehow got Sam to say yes, and now he shone in the vessel that was always meant for him.

He was blinded by his love when he forgot his brother's true nature, but there was no escaping it anymore. They were bonded, he needed him like humans needed air. It was an unhealthy obsession, and somewhere, deep down, he knew where their path was leading.

It took months, months full of guilt and misery and falling apart inside till he made his decision.

He had to stop Lucifer.

This couldn't go down as it was written. He didn't want to generate more chaos or destroy half the planet in a real battle. He had to go with deception, to give his brother a false sense of security, and if there was anything he was never good at, it was lying. He hated himself.

Michael was standing among the ruins of what used to be Detroit. One city was like the other to him, but he knew this place had a special meaning to Lucifer.

"You wanted to talk." Lucifer walked up to him, all in white, carrying a red rose, with a smile and trust in his eyes. _He knows nothing._ The thought made him want to cry. "You missed me... did you?"

The kiss was sweet, so sweet it almost made Michael change his mind. He clung to Lucifer as long as he could, wanting the moment to last forever.

"Show me your garden" he said when they parted, and they were walking among corpses.

"See, I got my revenge at last" Lucifer said and he looked so genuinely _happy_. A child... a capricious child with power not meant for this world. The time of angels was over, it had been over since the moment Father created man, they just choose to play blind. He only spared a look to his dead vessel and the little angel who's been in love with him, laying side by side, before turning his attention back to his brother. "Now I'll have more time for you, love. I know you wanted more, and I wanted it just as much. We're gonna be together." Lucifer looked at him through Sam's irresistible puppy eyes, and he seemed so innocent, so unaffected by his crimes, so _trusting_... "Michael... why are you crying?"

Fingers touched his face lightly. It was only then he felt his own tears. He had never cried before, not even in the Cage, in the darkest hours when he was losing his faith.

"Have I made you sad? Brother, I love you, you know that I love you more than anything in this world." They embraced again, and Michael kissed Lucifer, passionately, wildly, desperately, knowing that this was the moment, he had to do it _now_. The blade was in his hand, he didn't even notice when did he slip it out of his sleeve, and he stabbed.

He heard Lucifer gasp in pain and he was staring at Michael in shock and disbelief. The rose dropped from his weakened grip. "Why?" he whispered, gripping at the older angel's clothing with his fading strength. Michael had one arm around him, his right hand still holding the hilt of the blade.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" he said, sobbing, not even caring about dignity anymore.

"Don't... please... Michael, have mercy... I... don't kill me..." The sheer panic in his brother's voice hurt, he wanted nothing more than to listen, but he couldn't. "Why?"

"Shh... it's alright, little brother. Everything will be alright." He sank on his knees, carefully, holding him in his arms. "I love you. You are my life, you are all that is left to me. I'll keep you safe, but I had to end it."

"You think I'm a monster" Lucifer looked up at him, his gaze so sad and so hurt. Blood was seeping from his mouth.

"No, my love, no. Never say that." He caressed his hair.

"It hurts... please...just... make it stop..." He could feel his brother's pain in his own Grace. It was cruel to let him suffer instead of killing him swiftly. He just had to sink the blade an inch deeper. "Brother, I'm scared... I'm so scared..."

"I'll always be with you. Together. Together for eternity." Michael took the hilt again, closing his fingers around it. It would have been easier to turn away, but he owed Lucifer to look at him, to tell him for a last time that he was loved. He whispered gentle, soothing words to him, then he thrust the blade in his stomach to the hilt and held him tight as his Grace exploded in a blinding white light.

When it was gone, he looked at the charred outline of once-beautiful wings and he was overwhelmed with guilt, clutching his brother's body and burying his face in the silky hair, weeping uncontrollably.

He didn't know how long he stayed like that. Finally he let go, laying Lucifer down gently, closing his eyes and folding his brother's hands on his chest. He picked up the fallen rose and slipped it between his fingers. If it wasn't for the blood-stained white clothes, he could be sleeping.

"I love you. I will always love you." He pulled the blade out and leant down to breathe a last kiss on the cold lips.

As he broke off, he cried out to God. "Is this what you wanted? He idolized you, he needed you love, and you banished him. And you dare to call yourself a father? I hope you see us now, and rejoice, you bastard. I hate you. I renounce you. Keep your false Heaven... I choose perdition."

Michael looked down at his brother's peaceful face for a last time, then he drove the blade into his own heart.


End file.
